Posted by AlOmega on June 26, 2004 at 17:52:12:
I could say this happened on a dark and stormy night. It was dark and a light mist did indeed fill the air with dank humidity but there weren‘t storms. However, if you could have squeezed the air, drops of moisture would have dripped from your hands.
And this happened on the East Side. One could say it might have happened in Chicago or LA or NYC. But it happened near downtown Houston. And the only observer of the events was a black youth about seventeen who was high on crack or some other substance. Or at least HE thought he was which was his explanation for the sudden coldness and slithering sound that announced the arrival of … things. That was what he thought of them - things that looked like animals but walked on hind legs and wore clothes. But maybe he shouldn’t have been so surprised. Wasn’t this Halloween after all?
He had barely roused his six-foot wiry frame from this strangeness when another sound permeated his brain. This one was accompanied by a flash of light as a tall black woman materialized out of a wall. She was a fine looker, he thought at first. But as she approached a bit closer he realized she wasn’t exactly ‘black’ - more like very dark purple. And she had long white hair and pointed ears that gave him the impression that she also wasn‘t from around here. Add the two scimitars she wore - no banger, male or female, would wear swords - and it was enough to put the fear of God in him. Time to hide the shadows, he thought.
But that didn’t seem to dissuade her from ‘seeing’ him. How she did it he had no idea but she did. Stopping a few feet in front of him, she looked him up and down with a sneer and asked, “Just what are you suppose to be?”
He would have responded ‘Your worst nightmare’ but sensed, even though she was at least a bit shorter that this wasn’t one woman to mess with. When he didn’t respond, she reached for a multi-headed whip at her waist. The whip seemed to move as if it was composed of snakes.
“I’m ‘Capper’ Griffin, lady,” he replied quickly. He didn’t like messing with women no how. But he was getting a bit angry with this one even if she did look like some alien out of a Star Wars movie.
“What is this place?”
“Don’tja know, bitch? You’re in Houston. Where’r you from?”
“Insolent male,” she scorned. With a flick of her wrist, the whip slashed across his face leaving him in agony as she walked away. His pain was intent but not so bad that he didn’t see her following in the path of those strange animal things. In a few minutes the pain subsided only to be replaced with numbness. He was getting over that when a series of sharp cracks like gunshots startled him.
He ducked worried that someone was doing a ‘drive by’. But that wasn’t the case. A white guy rolled out onto the pavement followed by something else. The ‘something else’ he couldn’t figure out. But the white guy meant money and that was just what he needed. Pulling out his .38, he aimed it at the guy.
“Gimme yo’re wallet, sucker, or I’ll take it from yo’re dead body.”
“We don’t really have time for this, son. My name is Plard and we need some information - and by the looks of you, perhaps we can help as well.”
“You can help with the contents of yo’re wallet. Now gimme or yo’re one dead MotherFucker.”
“Stupid” came a soft voice from the darkness.
Enough was enough, Capper figured as he fired. And missed. Before he could fire again, a woman snatched his gun and examined it. Or was she a woman? She had been invisible even in the dimly lit streets. Now she wasn’t. And she was black all over - a very hairy ‘black’.
This was too much. A nightmare. It had to be. First the animals that walked and talked while wearing clothes. Then some strange black woman who wasn’t black and had swords. And now a white guy and a female with fur…..and claws he discovered as she extended one of them aside his nose.
“Now, Lou-San, leave him be. He’s at least seen the Drow. Those marks are proof of that.” While saying this, the white guy, called Plard, touched his face. As he did so, the numbness and little pain that remained then faded into memory. “Hummm.” He added placing his hands on Capper’s temples. “Perhaps NOW we can come to an understanding,” Plard said. “Just what did you see this evening?”
Capper had no problem telling everything he’d seen. The cat-woman, Lou-San, stopped him once when he mentioned Halloween but smiled when he explained the Holiday. That’s when Capper noticed she had pointed teeth and, if it could be believe, slim fangs like a vampire.
“A very interesting tale, you’ve told”, said the white guy, Plard who’s skin seemed to be darkening even as he spoke.
Then to Lou-San he added, “It would seem that two doorways opened rather than one. The second is our adversary.” He then said to Capper, “From what I gather I believe the first was a group from a place we call Saldant. I’m not going to weary you with a recount of what characters they are. Just think of them as fairy tale figures for now. “
“Uh, huh,” Capper replied. “They’s some critters from a nuthouse, I bet.”
“No, they’re very real. You can think of them as something from your imagination. I’m not sure which fairy tale they’re from but we need to catch them and put them back where they belong. As well we need to return the Drow.”
“Drow?”
“The black woman with the white hair,” added Lou-San. “You were very lucky. I’ve seen Drow carve out whole sections of meat which is what she’d think of you. Fact is, she barely tolerates her own kind. I suppose she figured you were a human so even further beneath her notice. Just consider her a very dangerous elf - if you believe in those.”
“Elf? Thought they had wings and stuff like pixy sticks. Those were big swords she had and a fucking whip.”
Lou-San chuckled. “Better the blades and whip than the magics - though I doubt she can call on Lolth here. She’s a priestess where she’s from. And her goddess is akin to spiders. By the way, your gun wouldn’t have harmed her much either.
“Oh and you might notice that I don’t bother you as much either. That’s just because you accept my existence - a result of what my mate, Plard, did when he touched your temples.”
“And found out some things about you, Godfry,” Plard added. “Capper seems such a silly name. Is it a local title?”
“Naw. I got it when I ‘capped’ a guy a few years back. Hey, he weren’t nothing but a druggie high on somethin’. But I aint gone by Godfry in a long time now. Better keep it Capper.
“Uh, you might tell me how you got ta be black though. A few minutes ago you was white.”
“Never mind that, Capper. Just tell me. You saw those animal critters and the Drow. Which way did they go?”
“Oh, they’s headed fer Enron…er…Minute Maid Park.”
“What’s that?” quarried Lou-San.
“That’s our baseball field. Astros. Ain’tja ever heared of ‘em?”
“No,” said Lou-San smiling. But then I don’t know what ‘baseball’ is either. And now is not the time for explanations.” She paused pensing Plard. *Sweetie, do you think we should take him with us? We need someone else since we don’t have either Toupia nor the Twins. You could blank his mind after.*
*I was thinking along the same lines.* And with that, the two with Capper in tow headed north.
The Drow priestess, Viconia Du'Colon was thoroughly confused. She had been about to kill two woodelven children when a force struck her from behind and she was pushed into ‘something’ - a door though to this new place. She had been part of a night raid on the surface far away from the Underdark and Hazzabreaniem that was her home. Initially they were to bring back slaves but finding a group of silly woodelves dancing in the starlight was too good a chance to pass up. Now she was ‘here’. She saw strange roads made of rock. Towering structures of stone and glass made for the wizards who must live here loomed not so far away. There were strange sounds and smells. And what was that wide ribbon of metal and stone that she had walked under. It had terrified her what with all it’s sounds and lights. Terrible things must prowl above. This place was frightening and she was not one to be easily frightened. Viconia had to find her way back.
Leaving the human male, she followed the faint trail of some two-legged creatures who’s footprints were still visible to her infrared vision. Possibly they knew what had happened. She was still puzzled about how she had gotten here in the first place. Perhaps it was due to her latest conflict with House Xentoralo. It was the first house of Hazzabreaniem and Zoathan was the Matron Mother. She it was who had given Viconia the name, L’Venorik Velve, or ‘The Silent Blade’, for her ability to strike at enemy creatures without them hearing a single sound. One of Zoathan’s daughters, a no account called , Zaltor, had been with them during the raid. Could Zaltor have done something that had thrown her where she was now?
It was possible primarily because she played the game of sava - both board and life - so well. She remembered when her personal game had started. Every drow daughter knew she must play the game for power. First she must secure a place for herself. Second she must secure prestige for her House. Finally she must please Lolth, the Spider Goddess. Her first play was against her twin sister. Both vied for their mother’s attention. Her sister claimed a higher position at first but with one failure she found herself overcome by her sister. It took two hundred years before Viconia caused her sister, Icarona’s, downfall by letting her find that talisman. Though it conferred several useful magical abilities, it had never occurred to Icarona that it might have also been cursed. From that day forward Icarona had slowly sickened in body, mind, and spirit, meanwhile struggling pathetically to hide any appearance of weakness from all who might discern it and try to exploit it to kill, torment, or strip her of her rank. That would have pretty much been anyone in Hazzabreaniem. During the several months of her malaise, Viconia just watched and waited for a chance to finish Icarona off. She’d learned her lesson but no matter how unlikely the possibility seemed, she would not leave her twin alive to recoup her fortunes again.
One night Viconia and half a dozen of her minions confronted Icarona in the fungus garden, where the topiarist had trimmed the phosphorescent growths into fanciful shapes. Icarona’s final moments might have seemed pitiful, had Viconia been susceptible to that crippling emotion. First she tried activating the talisman but Viconia dispelled that with a thought. Then as her minions watched, Viconia repeatedly took vicious slashes with her blades before taking great pleasure in burying her blade in Icarona’s bowels. A slow twist and she had died though being drow her agonizing death took nearly an hour. It was soon after that she attacked her brother finally chasing him from the House to the Mage Tower, Kardolth. Her mother was pleased.
For that matter her mother was pleased when Viconia attacked her - an expected but futile act. She even smiled while letting her five-snake-headed whip score repeatedly across her face. She had almost died from that punishment but her mother also had provided the healing potions that had brought her from the brink of death. It was a turning point in her life and the beginning of her admittance into the Temple of Lolth for training. It had taken ten years to change her into one of the finer Clerics in Hazzabreaniem. That was one reason she felt lost for she no longer had that contact with Lolth that she had know since her departure from the Temple.
She looked around. The place smelled foul but she had smelled worse. The mist might have exacerbated the situation but there seemed to be the smell of foul cooking along with the stinks of burning oil. They were faint but still there. Her Piwafwi Cloak was still serviceable but not as powerful as it would have been in the Underdark. Her Piwafwi - a Drow-made garment created from the silken hairs of a unicorn’s mane - was embroidered with many unique gemstones all of which were normally enchanted emitting energies identical to those naturally occurring in the Underdark. To those of this place, it looked not unlike a hooded poncho. She suspected that many of her common magics might be nullified. She was able to levitate a little and retained some of her invisibilities but that seemed to be it. And she couldn’t seem to access her Lolth Priestess’s powers. It was as if Lolth did not exist here. Neither did the magics of her rings appear to work. And she was definitely not going to test the fireball necklace that she had found in the black enclave where a frost drake had dwelt.
Wherever she was, it wasn’t the Underdark nor any other areas of her world that she had been thrust into. Neither was this any city of the surface world for she knew enough from other Drow that no place like this existed even in the cities of humans, gnomes, or dwarves. She had heard the male wizards speak of other worlds that might exist. Gorium, the supreme wizard of her city, had heard human wizards speak of visiting worlds where strange beings lived and little magic existed. He had mentioned that one wizard had been to a place where dragons rode the skies on stiff wings of metal. Perhaps this place was like that. But surely no priestess nor Drow wizard could have launched her here. No one that she knew of had that ability.
A metal monster materialized out of the darkness. From it’s front, it cast twin baleful eyes of light that penetrated the fog that was slowly rising. It was longer than any wagon she had ever seen. A series of bells came from it as it passed. From another direction, a much larger monster that seemed larger than a ship rushed it’s way northward oblivious of her presence in the dark. In the distance she heard the evocative sounds of whistles and other things which had to represent monsters that she didn’t wish to discover nor have them discover her.
Suddenly she heard the rustling of paper and leaves. Something or someone was in a darkened building that loomed ahead. Although a powerful light permeated the air from atop metal poles that lined the streets of this city, she was still invisible. Nor did the light harm her as would sunlight so in one sense she felt safe.
That changed when she was startled as a box near her emitted several loud clicks and lights at the corner changed from green to yellow and then to red while others facing other directions changed to green. Looking around, she saw that the streets were lined with more of those lights at the corners along with other nearby signs had orange hands that sometimes blinked, sometimes were steady, and sometimes showed white figures. Whatever their purpose, they didn’t pose a threat.
Looking down once more, she saw the footprints entering a darkened doorway. The doorway led into some sort of large unnatural tunnel. With a shrug, she entered the darkness depending on her inferred vision to ferret out any dangers. As she entered the darkness, however, she was felled by a heavy blow.
Lou-San wasn’t particularly impressed with this city. She had seen many in a much more advanced state of creation and decay; and, so many worlds boasted cities much larger. She preferred the more advanced cities that imposed the briefest of impacts over that of nature itself - though a nature contained and managed. It wouldn’t do to have predatory animals and uncontrolled underbrush in a city after all primarily because few ‘civilized’ peoples could avoid being on the menu and a city needed people. If she had thought on it she would have seen this as something stemming from her hatred of large gatherings. Her kind could tolerate groups of thirty to forty but were uncomfortable with more; and, even though she was the exception, if it hadn’t been for Plard, she would never have forced herself to endure more.
Plard on the other hand was fairly comfortable. Humax had developed cities in their distant past. The one thing he didn’t like were the acrid smells of burning fossil fuels. However, he also knew that in a zero civilization like this, the advent of Solar - let alone Sidereal - energy had yet to be developed properly. Humans were a strange lot, he thought. They could be very intelligent and very ignorant at the same time and with equal ease. For example he marveled at the ability to create those massive overhead roads but couldn’t understand why they hadn’t capped their population expansion. Perhaps these humans were following the pathway that the humans of Altar IV had pursued. They had been technologically advanced yet their survival as a species was marred by their inability to control their biological urges - primarily because of their archaic religious beliefs.
His thoughts soon strayed to the drow. If he had read the human’s thoughts correctly, the drow had followed the trail of the Saldantians and they in turn had gone northward. They would have been frightened enough to do just that. Which Saldantians these were, Plard was unclear on. But Capper had described creatures that resembled a bear, a fox, and a rabbit. However frightened as they probably were, he suspected they would head for any large structure that was wide, not too tall, with a large space inside - rather like a cave. The drow would follow seeking the only ones she thought could lead her back to her world. Her problem would be confidence. She wouldn’t be as cautious as she normally would be. Moreover, she would consider herself immune against anything this world could throw at her. Plard reasoned that the drow would be aware of her inability to communicate with Lolth. And if she arrogantly followed her path confident in her magics, she would soon find herself in trouble if not dead. After all, even in this world, many things abode that could render someone ‘dead’.
Capper wasn’t sure just ‘why’ he had decided to go with these people. However it seemed to be the safest thing to do at the time. He clearly had not thought it through. Who these people were, he wasn’t sure either. The man who was clad in black, seemed to have become black - sort of the reverse of Michael Jackson. This Plard seemed weaponless - quite unlike the woman.
At her waist, the woman, Lou-San wore a fairly thin sword and small dagger. Other than the belt around her waist containing the sword, dagger and two pouches, she only wore two sashes and a very short skirt - enough to cover her some but utterly useless in this mist. But then again the mist had stopped only to be followed by a cold fog. He watched the two consult again as they had twice before. He wasn’t sure how they did it but they both seemed to be tracking that drow.
“Capper”, whispered Plard after he had beckoned him closer. “We need to communicate better.” Plard gently brushed his forehead once. “Ah, that should do.”
*Can you hear me now.*
“Did you say something? I didn’t see your lips move.”
Lou-San smiled. *You needn't speak either. Plard’s given you a bit of mind-speak - our common language. It’ll make communication much easier between us.*
*Weird*
*Perhaps* Plard added with a smile of his own. *What we need to know is whether there is a cave or cave-like structure near here.*
*I suppose,* said Capper after a bit of thought. *There’s the Aquarium and there’s Minute Maid. The ball park is closer though.*
*This ‘ball park’ is north of us?* queried Lou-San with a nod of her head toward the north. *That is where their trail is leading.*
*Yes.
Out of the fog came the squealing of tires as two cars full of bangers rounded the corner and screeched to a halt.
“Daamn,” said Capper. “Jack-o’s bunch. Gotta get you undercover before it’s too late.”
“Hey, Capper,” came a shout from the lead Capri. “Whatcha doin’ in our ‘hood?” And from both vehicles stepped several oriental teens - with pistols drawn.
“Gotcha,” said a big, brown bear scratching his head. While scratching, he pushed his hat back a bit. “Donno what I gots but I clobbered it good,” he added before catching the hat and placing it back on his head.
“Donno either, Bear” said a smaller creature that looked like a cross between an otter and a coyote - though neither had red fur. “Looks like a human but aint got the right hair fer that. Female though. Glad you conked ‘er cause she had two of da biggest knives I ever did see. Think we’s got some rope left over from tyin’ up Rabbit over thar.”
He said this while gesturing toward a small, bundle of fur with long ears. Someone had gagged him with an overabundance of cloth so that only faint muffling sounds escaped.
“But this ’un aint fer eatin’”, he added. “Rabbit is. Bring that female human-critter along. If’n she gives us problems, we can toss her over the fence anyways. ‘Sides, humans ‘r dangerous. Don’t wanna tread on ‘dangerous’, don’tja know.”
“Yep. Gotta eat Rabbit cause of that time when he got me on the tail of that horse…”
“And got them bees after me while I had my head in that thar tree,” added Bear. “But whatcha gonna do ‘bout this human?”
“She’ll watch. ‘Sides I like her big knives fer cutting wood ‘cause the only wood we gots fer the fire is over here and they’re too big to make a fire with.”
“Uh, yeah,” replied Bear again scratching his head. “Them’s too big fer sticks for the fire. They might make nice clubs though.”
“Well you can keep one of em fer a club, Bear.” While your at it, throw that human over your shoulder n bring em along with Rabbit. I’ll tote the wood.”
So saying Fox gathered several of the large wooden logs (which someone else would call ‘bats‘) and led Bear into a very large grassy area. The grassy area was rather like a cave with the top of the cave open to the night air. The Drow was still unconscious but Rabbit wasn’t and kept struggling all the while Bear was following Fox.
There was a part of the grassy area that was only dirt and if one could look from above, the dirt was shaped like a diamond. It was to the top most corner of the dirt area that Fox went and dropped his load of logs. Taking one of the scimitars, Fox used it like an axe to begin chopping the logs into smaller pieces about the time Bear dropped the Drow and Rabbit. Again using the scimitar, he made ready a spit to tie Rabbit to. Finally he used flint and steel (which he had also obtained from the Drow) to get a fire going.
Rabbit was very frightened now. Unless he could think of something or at least speak, he was gonna get roasted. He so wished he coulda gotten back into that briar patch.
“Capper, you and your gang shouldn’t be here,” said Jacko raising a pistol in both hands. “Now you’re gonna be so much dead meat.”
“Hey, J-Jacko,” Capper stuttered. “I aint g-gonna stay. Was only showin’ these people around and heading for Min. Park.”
“Well me and my hood are taking exception to your trespassing so prepare to die.”
“Foolish humans,” said Lou-San with a sigh. Capper glanced at her and glanced back again as if noticing her for the first time. Where her fur had been was now black skin just as if she was black. And man-o-man, she was one hellofa mama.
“Agreed,” added Plard as he took a pen-like device from a pocket. Eight Vietnamese teens found that their guns no longer functioned. But that wasn’t going to stop them from taking on the three. Three of the teens brought martial arts weapons to bear.
“Here. Take this,” Lou-San said handing Capper a knife. “Think you’re good enough to take on the leader. Hope so cause we’ve got our hands full with the others. Lou-San drew out a rapier from her belt and smiled as the three with weapons approached. At the same time four of the others started acting as if they were some sort of martial arts experts.
Plard smiled as one of the four threw several stars at him although they must have been rethinking their position when he dodged the first three and caught the next four. Two were returned unkindly to the one who had initially tossed them. The teen dropped to the ground unconscious but also unharmed. While the youths may have been practicing their styles for several years, Plaid had the benefit of practicing and utilizing hundreds of different styles of unarmed combat for centuries. Moreover, he had practiced on heaver worlds so his approach was to use speed and nerve endings. Thus, to them, he became a blur as he moved among the other three tumbling them into that little death called ’sleep’. Neither was Lou-San inactive.
The first youth began twisting and twirling double tiger-headed hook swords. Lou-San’s smiled drawing her thin scarlet blade. He advanced trying to confuse her with his skills. Lou-San let her slim epee-like sword twist into the hook sword action but in the wake of the twisting, both hook swords were cleaved in two as if they were so much paper. She rapped the wielder with the hilt of her blade taking him out of the battle.
“How was that?” she asked with a smile.
“Need some assistance?” asked Plard in return as he finished dispatching the last teen.
“No, my sweet,” she responded as the second teen took two twenty-four inch police batons and, with a simple twist of each stick, changed them to two sets of twelve inch nunchaku. Lou-San seemed to remember being introduced to the use of this weapon by Chao Kuan Yin. These were a bit different from uneven lengths of rods that he had developed however the techniques were the same. All she had to know was that they were an excellent defense against the sword - though her sword might not prove all that powerless.
At the same time the third Vietnamese teen cast a rope dart her way. She dodged easily though she was beginning to wish she had retained her Feleni shape since she moved much faster as Feleni. Any shapeshift would be fruitless now. Besides it was fairly easy for her to dart inside of the nunchaku wielder and take one of his set of nunchaku. With that weapon, she caught the next thrust of the dart and, after wrapping the fifteen foot rope around the nunchaku, brought the wielder to her before he could drop the weapon. He also she struck dropping him unconscious. As he fell, she dropped the rope-wound nunchaku.
The youth quickly threw another star at Lou-San who catching it, threw it back. The teen caught it on the remaining nunchaku but was unable to prevent her rapping him on the head with the heel of her right hand. Lou-San was very angry with herself for being so slow. Without much thought, she changed to Feleni.
While the two aliens had taken the seven gang members down quickly, Capper wasn’t having an easy time. Not only was he less sure of his abilities with a blade but Jacko knew so much more. While Lou-San was disarming the hook sword user, Capper was taking a slash to his ribs. A slip, just as Plard knocked the last of the gang unconscious, garnered him a cut on his right forearm. He was worried cause he wasn’t even bring a sweat to Jacko. It didn’t help that Jacko was smiling as he tossed his blade to his other hand. Capper managed to step aside as Jacko attacked and luckily for him, he slipped because Jacko came back with stab toward his chest. As Capper went to one knee, Jacko again stabbed at his unprotected left side.
By this time, Lou-San and Plard were leaning against a chain link fence watching the two in their struggle for survival.
“Think we should help him, Plard?”
“He has to learn sooner or later, my sweet.” Plard winced as Capper again jerked around avoiding another slash to the ribs.
However, it was Jacko who faltered first. That was because he saw Lou-San shape shifting to Feleni. Capper came inside and hit Jacko as hard as he could. Jacko dropped like a rock.
“No, no, Capper,” Plard said stopping the youth from burying his blade in Jacko’s heart. “Here, let me help you,” he added taking a cloth and sponging the blood away. What Capper failed to see was Plard’s healing of his simple wounds. Though still a bit tired, Capper stood up once again ready to head with the two aliens toward Minute Maid Park.
“I know your eager, Capper, but I’d suggest you rest a few minutes. After all we don’t know what we’re going to find. And that Drow as well as the others are people we don’t want to encounter while we’re tired.”
As Capper rested, Lou-San and Plard acted as if they were tending the unconscious bangers. In reality, they were wiping the bangers’ memories of the last few minutes including the actual fight. They didn’t need more witnesses. Soon thereafter, they headed toward the ballpark. Near one of the entrances, Plard stopped.
“He’s here,” quietly said Plard. Nothing more needed to be said.
Lou-San on the other hand let a few Feleni expletives strike the air.
AlOmega